The future of food (From Bournemouth Echo)

The future of food

11:03am Monday 1st February 2010 in

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AS WE enter a new decade, expect to be eating roast grouse for lunch, followed by a helping of ripe mangosteen. At least, that’s what the experts say.

At the start of the “teens”, all the big food brands are clamouring to be an authority on the future and here’s what they predict…

Back to basics

According to The Future of Cooking report commissioned by Sainsbury’s, shopping behaviours will change over the next decade as spending becomes more thrifty, cooking preparation becomes more considered, and we adopt a make-do-and-mend attitude reminiscent of the 1950s.

Judith Kleine Holthaus, account director at the Future Foundation, adds that cooking has been shown to be an important source of kudos and social capital among consumers.

“We fully expect this ‘authentic-seeking’ to continue,” she says. “We’ve seen more people cooking from scratch over recent years, combined with an appreciation of quality, authentic food.”

Technology

The Future Foundation predicts that 45 per cent of consumers will be accessing the mobile internet at least once a week by the middle of the decade. “Suddenly, sending off an order for the core items of your food shop can be done from the train or bus stop, wherever you are with your smartphone,” says Holthaus.

Going green

Not only will we be cooking more, but fears for the environment will encourage sales of local produce, and shoppers will start to only buy what they need, in order to stop wasting food. Graham Cassie, of Waitrose says sales of local and regional products are currently growing by 50 per cent year on year. “New local products quite often become national favourites such as rapeseed oil. Provenance is clearly king,” he says.

Health

Forecasters at Sainsbury’s believe health concerns will change our habits. In its Future of Cooking report, the supermarket predicts a greater demand for game meats (like grouse, venison and pheasant), which are low in fat and cholesterol. Sales are forecast to rise by 47 per cent within the next two years.

The report also states that vegetables will be fresher as local growers link up with supermarkets and different cuts of cheaper meats will become more popular.

Travel

As consumers become ever more travel-hungry, Sainsbury’s think our food tastes will continue to change and become more exotic. In London, their forecasters predict that Afghan food will be the next big food craze thanks to its unfussy style and wonderful culinary culture, while Neil Nugent of Waitrose thinks Canada will dominate our kitchens.

“Canadian-inspired food is seeing a really big insurgence – they offer a fantastic mix of artisan styles with modern thinking mixed in.

“During the next 10 years, we will really see more and more Canadian food stuffs make their way on to the shelves, including cloudberries, lobster mushrooms and Saskatoon berries, which are similar to blueberries.”

Even herb and spices manufacturer Schwartz has started gazing into its crystal ball. In its 2010 Flavour Forecast, they predict we’ll be cooking more at home and using more fresh vegetables.

Below is some inspiration from Schwartz